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#BoilerNotes
- Head coach Dave Shondell announced before the match that the Boiler Box Challenge would be renamed as the Stacey Clark Classic in honor of long-time volleyball supporter Stacey Clark, who has dedicated nearly 30 years to the program and coordinates the Gold Block booster group.
- The Boilermakers awarded Clark with the Golden Hammer, an important symbol for the 2015 team, in honor of her support.
- Purdue will wrap up the tournament with an 8 p.m. match against Notre Dame in Mackey Arena on Saturday. The eight largest crowds ever to watch Purdue volleyball at home have seen the Boilermakers play in Mackey Arena. The 2014 crowd of 7,030 is the fourth-highest in program history.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The No. 22 Boilermakers fought off an upset-minded Ball State team in a 26-24, 25-21, 25-14 sweep Friday night to move to 8-2 on the season and 2-0 on the day at the Boiler Box Challenge.
Senior Annie Drews downed 14 kills, while hitting at a .345 clip to lead the Purdue attack, while sophomore Lydia Dimke added nine kills and six other players got in on the offensive action. Redshirt senior Kaisley Fisher and sophomore Azariah Stahl had five kills apiece. Sophomore Danielle Cuttino pace the Boilermaker block with six stuffs, while redshirt sophomore Ashley Evans and freshman Alexa Smith added three apiece.
Defensively, senior libero Amanda Neill posted 12 digs, while freshman Brooke Peters added 10 saves as well as a team-leading two aces. Purdue outhit Ball State .252 to .102 in the match and also won every other major statistical category.
The teams split the first 28 points of the match with neither squad gaining more than a two-point lead (Purdue at 6-4 and 7-5). Cuttino put down two kills and combined with Evans on a block, while Drews added three putdowns in the opening stretch. Dimke pounded down an overpass and added a third kill in in a five-point stretch as Purdue surged ahead 17-14, after trailing 14-13. The Boilermakers led by four at 20-16, but the set was far from over as BSU managed two kills and a block and took advantage of two Purdue miscues en route to a 21-20 lead. A kill by Drews and back to back stuffs by Cuttino put the Boilermakers back on top 23-21. A kill by Smith two plays later put Purdue on the hill for the set, but Ball State fought off two set-point chances with a kill and an ace to tie it at 24 and force a Boilermaker timeout. Cuttino had a kill out of the break and the Cardinals committed a hitting error to give Purdue the 26-24 set win.
Drews had six kills in the set. Drews and Dimke accounted for nine of Purdue's 12 kills in Set 2 as the Boilermakers outhit Ball State .259 to .167 in the 25-21 win. The Boilermakers took an early 5-3 lead behind a pair of Cuttino blocks. Ball State tied it up at five and six, but the Boilermakers broke free with six of the next nine points, including two Dimke kills, to take a 12-9 lead. Purdue built its lead to four at 14-10, but the Cardinals rallied to tie the score at 17 with help from three Boilermaker errors, a block and an ace. After a timeout, the team managed three straight points, including two more Dimke putaways, to go up 20-17. A block cut the margin to one at 21-20, but Purdue closed out the set with a 4-1 run capped by a kill and an ace by Drews.
Six different players got in on the offensive action in Set 3. Drews and Evans tallied three apiece to lead the way as Purdue outhit BSU .216 to .000. The Boilermakers raced out to a 7-0 lead with assistance from four Cardinal miscues and a block and a kill by Smith. Ball State narrowed the gap to five at 9-4, but that sparked Purdue to score six of the next seven points, to go ahead 15-5. Workman served up an ace and Fisher put down two kills in the rally. An ace by Peters and a kill from Dimke made it a 12-point game at 18-6. The Cardinals would get no closer than eight (19-11 and 20-12) the rest of the way. Evans put down two kills in the final five points, including the game-winner.
The Boilermakers (8-2) return to action at 8 p.m. Saturday against Notre Dame in Mackey Arena. Tickets are just $5 for lower bowl seating and $2 for upper bowl seating.